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If you have heartburn twice a week or more you may have Acid Reflux Disease. Medications simply mask the symptoms but one patient who suffered with heartburn for years finally got tired of it and had procedure that provided him with a new outlook on life.

"[It was a] very short procedure," said Les Lyon. "I was asleep the whole time. I didn't know anything about it. I had an overnight stay in the hospital which was fine."

Lyon suffered with heartburn for longer than a decade. Gastrointestional Reflux Disease, or GERD, happens when a valve breaks down over time. It doesn't close when it's supposed to and pushes reflux back into the esophagus. That's where Transoral Incisionless Fundoplication, or TIF, comes into play.

Dr. Peyton Davis says the advantages of TIF include lower chance of side effects and complications. There are no incisions so there is less potential for scarring.

Following the procedure, Lyon said he can eat whatever he wants and is down 25 pounds. Davis says he's pleased with Lyon's post-surgical progress.

"He was a great patient. He had reflux symptoms that bothered him on medications," said Davis. "He researched it, he adhered to the diet post-operatively, which I think is the most important thing, and he's off his medications now."

Davis is the first physician in North Carolina to do the procedure. He did it at Lake Norman Regional Medical Center. Statistics show that there is a greater than 80 percent success rate for patients who go two years without medication.

"It would be a big thank you because it's a miracle worker," said Lyons. "It's marvelous. The results, it's outstanding."

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